The use of pen names is becoming outdated. Authors should recognize that by using a pen name they might not receive the recognition that they deserve. Who knows who Samuel Langhorne Clemens is? He is only one of the most famous authors in the world. He wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and The Prince and the Pauper. His pen name is Mark Twain. Yes, everyone recognizes Mark Twain but few recognize Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

Some use a pen name to keep their lives private. It would be hard to keep your life private if your name appears on every major newspaper, social media site or television station. Most major publishers are saying that the use of pen names is outdated, unless you are already using one. Famous people in different careers are using pseudonyms such as actors, celebrities and writers to keep their lives private, because their name is hard to pronounce or for marketing purposes. Perhaps they think that a pseudonyms can help establish their brand. So to answer the question about using a pen name, I’ll let you be the judge.

If you decide on using a pen name, my suggestions are:
1. Make the name unique
2. Don’t chose a name after one of your characters in case you write several books with major characters.
3. Don’t chose a name that would conflict with any genre that you may use later on. Ex. Your pen name is Suzie Que and you write a dark fiction novel. It doesn’t go well.

Any business can market their product online by using some various strategies. Here are some basic tips to help any business market their brand online. Whether you are a large corporation or a small business, these 5 tips should help you gain some footing into the world of online marketing.

1. Know your target audience.
What type of customers are going to be interested in your product. Look for places to market your brand by doing some basic research. If you are an author, you must take into consideration what type of people will be interested in reading your book. What type of book did you write? Did you write a young adult book about romance? Did you write a nonfiction book about Health? Where would you go and try to market those types of books?

2. Use social media to build an online presence.
Why is Social media so important? It is a great avenue to reaching people all over the world. People you would never come into contact with. There are a lot of different sites that you can join. Facebook is probably the number one site. Mostly everyone knows about Facebook but didn’t know that they could set up their own business page or fan page. A fanpage is place where you can directly talk about your product or books, add photos about your business or cover art, and website links to where people can buy your product or books.

3. Build an effective website.
There are different places you can go and set up a website. Without a place to go to explore information about you and your business, it will be hard to reach new customers and therefore sell your product. Make your website engaging, appealing to the eye, and easily assessable.
4. Create a Blog and Blog regularly.
Blogging is more important than most people realize. Most companies blog to build rapport, establish their companies online presence, and educate people about their products. Share valuable content about your business and the services you provide; therefore building customers.

5. Give away something for free.
Give away something that others might be interested in. Or you can have a contest of some kind. It can be to simply give away a free copy of your book. There are so many great ideas to choose from. One author gave away a kindle for promoting their book website.

These are some basic tips that may be helpful to you no matter what your business is. Be active and post content daily on your sites. The more social sites you have the more opportunities you have to set up your brand and establish an online presence.

I recently watched the inaugural live online writing workshop ‘Finding the magic: Writing for Children’ – an innovative world first from WritersWebTV, presented by Vanessa O’Loughlin of writing.ie.

Although I wasn’t sure what to expect, I’ve had lots of wonderful experiences linked to Vanessa – including finding my agent (Sallyanne Sweeney), the place I now call home and as a result, my husband! – so I was pretty certain that it would be a quality affair.

Although it’s not usually easy, I was willing to write off a day of writing to immerse myself in advice from talented authors and industry professionals. The list was impressive, with the likes of Michael Emberley, Marie Louise Fitzpatrick, Norton Vergien, Oisin McGann and Meg Rosoff on hand to share their knowledge of the industry and writing tips, answer questions and set short writing tasks.

Any new writer will have some anxiety when it comes to dealing with the public. The thing about promoting your books to different people is to be yourself. Whether you are talking to someone on a television interview or at a book signing, here are some basic things to know when talking to someone about your book.

1. Don’t give too much information. When you are trying to tell someone about your book, don’t tell them everything. You should never tell them how the story ends. The person will lose interest in your book if there is no mystery.

2. Don’t sell your book. Never try to sell the book itself. Tell people reasons that your book will help them.

3. Clarify what your book is about. If you have written a book for educational purposes, to be humorous or just plain fictional, make sure to let the reader know that in advance.

4. Don’t be too pushy. No one likes people shoving things in their faces. Simply show the book, suggest reasons they might like the book and stand back. Give the reader time to look the book over.

5. Ask them to tell their friends about your book. Word of mouth is always the best advertisement.

6. Thank the customer and hand them a business card. This should be done even if they do not purchase your book. They might not have the money to buy at the moment, but will buy at a later time.

7. Be approachable. Don’t act like you are better than everyone else. Be yourself and be friendly.